Current-motor.



W. HENRY. CURRENT MOTOR. APPLICATION FILED'JULY 31, 1913.

1,109,839! Patented Sept. 8, 1914'.

2 SHEETSSHEET l.

iiiiiiijilljlii INi EN TOR:

ATTORNEY.

W. HENRY. CURRENT MOTOR. APPLIOATION FILED JULY 31, 1913 1 1 09,839,, Patented Sept. 8, 1914. A 2 SHEETSSHEET 2.

gH/W' 20 45 42 1 l J 7 /9 15L, 7 6 4 /ITTORNEY.

" i totiors, otwhieh the following lion.

unit-ran rairnnr omen WILLIAM HENRY, NORTH KAr-iriAS CITY, MESSOUBI.

' Application filed July 31 'To (17/ var/1mm it may concern lle it known that 1. WILLIAM tlnnnr, a citizen of the United States. residing at 'liorth Kansas City, in the county of Clay and State ot ivlissouri, have invented certain new and useful lnqnoveinenls in Currentis a speeilicalJiv invention relates to iIHPIOVQlIlGlllZS in vcurrent motors.v and niy ob ect is to provide a machine of this character whereby the power ot st-r ains may be utilized to the best advantage for lndustrial purposes.

to. be anchored in a stream, and turbines mounted in a tlume of said float to transmit .the power of the current flowing through 1 ltjn. lis a broken section on line lV--'IV live ot a blade of one ot the turbines.

l dcsignateslhe lloat, which. in the. present instance, (HIiPl'lSUS two airtight. coinpariinents 2 united by a bottom portion 8.- (nnipartnwnts 2 are arranged at opposite -i;lcs""('il' a' ccutral tlunie' -'i ext-endil'ig longiludinzillv through thetloat, as shown on Fig. 2. 'llie-hottoin 3 of the tlunie 4. slopes up wardly from tront to rear. so that water flowing; through said 'lhune will be carried upward above the normal water level A of the stream in which lhe uiachine is anchored. l v thus liltini. the water in the thune vein. little resistance or back pressure will be oll'ered to its discharge. The mouth 5 of. the lhune is made llaring to raise the level and increase the pressure of the water at the entrance thereof, so that the water will flow through the tluiue with great. rapidity, and thus exert considerable power on the tarbines.

"lhc compartments '3 are larger at therear than in trout to sustain the additional weight 'due' to lifting the ater at the rear of the lllune. as above described. The entrance of water to the lhnne 4, is controlled by a gate (3, hinged to the front end of the flu1ne.b0t-

tom and adapted to close against a pair of Specification of Letters Eatent.

The invention embodies a float adapted CURRENT-MOTOR.

Patented Sept. 5, 1914.

strips 7, secured to the opposite-sides of the flaring mouth 5 of the flulne. Logs. and other debris floating down streanrare prevented from .enteringthe flu ne and possibly da' naging the turbines o a tender consisting of a plurality of curved rode S fixed at their lower ends'to the front portion. of thevgate (i and projecting loosely through a guidebar 9, extending transversely across the tlinne and secured to the top of thecoinpartinents 2. Rods 8 are provided with collars 10 to prevent their withdrawal through the openings in the guide-bar 9, \vhen;'the

gate-6 is lowered.

Gate 6 is controlled by a cable 11, secured at its lower ends to said gate andat its upper end to adrum l2, rigidly mounted upon a shaft 13 provided atone end with a crank it and journaled in bearings 15, mounted upon the front portion of the coinpartinents Each side of the fiinne 4 has a series of vertical pockets 16 to receive the turbines 17, whereby the power of the current flowing through said flame is utilized. The forward portions of pocket-s 16 are concentric with the turbines 17, to fold the blades of the. latte as will hereinafter appear. Each turbine comprises a drum 18 and a plurality of blades 19, which latter are folded against the former by the sides of the pockets 16 when said'blades are passing in an opposite direction to the current, so as to otter little or no resistance to the rotation of the turbine. Drum 18 is pivotally-inoln-ited upon a StiilfilihiFZO andelopsel -mounted upon a shaft- 531, which latter extends upwardly from a step-bearing 22 on the bottom 8 of the flame and enters a socket 93 in the lower end of the stubshatt 20 see Fig: 3.

Eachblade 19 is of the same curvature as its drain 18, so that it may told snugly against said drum as shown on Figs. 2 and 5. Each blade is mounted at its trout end upon a pivot 2i extending; vertically through the drum, and each blade is provided at its top and bottom portions adjacent said pivot 2-1, with interned crankarinsflo. the upper arm being! adapted to contact a depending trip-pin 26 and swing the blade out into the pathof the current just asthe rear end of said blade passes the point-27 ot-its respective pocket 16. The trip pin 26 depends from one end of an adjust-' .shaft 20 and provided at its rearend with a bolt 29, which extends upward through a segmental slot 30, and is provided with a nut 31. to lock said arm 28 in any of its adjusted positions. By'loosening the nut 31, the arm 28 may be adjusted in a horizontal plane on the shaft 20 to throw the trip-pin 26 closrr to or farther from the pocket point 27, so that the blades will be opened sooner or later. The opening movement of the blades 19 is restricted by the rear edges of their vertical portions 32 contacting the sides of the drum 17, and the crank-arms contacting stop-pins 33 projecting from the top of the drum 17.

The upper ends of the stub-shafts 20 are provided with rigidly mounted bevel wheels 3%, which drive bevel wheels- 35 mounted upon shafts 36, journaled in bearings 37 and extending longitudinally of the float. Each shaft 36 is provided at its rear end with a rigidly mounted. bevel-gear wheel 38/,

which drives a similar gear wheel 39 fiXedly-' mounted upon a shaft 40 provided With a fixedly-mounted pulley 41, for "transmitting the power developed by the machine toa" dynamo or other point of use. Shaft 40 is journaled in bearings 43 upon the rear portion of the compartments 2. ,Slots 30 extend through brackets 44:,secured to the top of compartments 2; and constitute bearings for the st-ub-shafts/ 20.

Having thus described my invention,

what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is; v

1. A motor of the character described, consisting of a flgiat having a flume extending therethrough, a gate pivoted at the entrance of said flame to control the flow of water therethrough, means for actuating said gate, scgmentssecured at their lower ends to said gate, a transverse barsecured to the float and having openings through which said segments project, and water wheels mounted in the flame.

2. A motor of the character described, consisting of a float having a flame extend- I ing thercthrough, two series of water wheels mounted in said fiumc, gearing connecting each series of water wheels, and gearing intermeshing with the first-mentioned gearing to transmit power therefrom.

3. A motor of the character described, consisting of a float having a flume extend,- ing therethrough, pockets in the sides of said Hume, said pockets having curvedportions, turbines mounted in said pockets, having pivoted blades adapted to be folded by the curved portions of said pockets during part of the revolution of the turbines, and means for unfolding sa id blades after they have passed out of contact with the pockets.

4:- A motor of the character described, consisting of a float having a flume extending therethrough, turbines mounted in said flume, said turbines having pivoted blades adapted to fold to inoperative position, pockets in the sides of the flame having curved portions concentric with'thc turbines to fold the blades thereof during a portion of the revolution of said turbines, and means for tripping said blades to open position after they have passed out of contact -.with the pockets.

5. A motor of the character described,

consisting of a float having a ilume extendng therethrough, .pockcts 1n the sides of said flume, turbines mounted in sand pockets, having fold-able blades with crank arms at the inner ends thereof, and a trippin against Which said crank arms impinge and unfold the blades of the turbines.

6. A motor of the character described, consisting of a float having a fiume cxtending thercthrough, pockets in the sides of said flume, turbines mounted in said pockets', having foldable blades with crank arms at the inner ends thereof, a trip-pin against which said crank arms impinge and unfold therblades of the turbines,andadjustable arin carrying said trip-pin, and means. for

'securingsaid adjustable arm at any point of its adjustment.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signa- .ture, in the presence of two witnesses.

WILLIAM 1 l ENRY. Witnesses:

F. G. Fisonuu, L. J. FISCHER. 

